


take to hallowed wings

by AlexiaBlackbriar13



Series: here there be dragons [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dragon Guides, Dragons, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak, F/M, Family Dinners, Fluff, Humor, Island still happened, Just warning ya'll that Laurel is a bit of a bitch in this, Kissing, Light Angst, Panic Attacks, Romance, Season/Series 01, Sort of like daemons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 16:34:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15999116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexiaBlackbriar13/pseuds/AlexiaBlackbriar13
Summary: Oliver and his dragon guide, Xad, have been back in civilisation for three weeks. Oliver and Felicity, having gone on a couple of dates together and grown much closer, are developing their relationship.Tension rises, however, when Oliver, Felicity, Xad and Issa attend a family dinner the Queens have set up to welcome Tommy and the Lance family back from their vacation in Alaska, so they can meet with the archer for the first time after being rescued from Lian Yu.





	take to hallowed wings

**Author's Note:**

  * For [hollicita](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollicita/gifts).



> I promised a sequel to _here there be dragons_... here it is, finally! The first work in the series can be found [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13205520).
> 
> Gifted to hollicita (@fluffarama on tumblr) for their amazing support, generosity and kindness xxx
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

* * *

It was Oliver and Xad’s third week back in civilization after returning from their five years of hell, and it was early Saturday night. They weren’t hanging out in a nightclub, or practicing shooting down in the Foundry before heading out on Hood duties… they weren’t even at home in the Queen mansion, holed up in their bedroom as they usually remained in the evenings, trying to stay away from Oliver’s family, who seemed far too eager to grill him for information about being stranded on the island.

Nope, Oliver and Xad were hanging out in Felicity Smoak’s apartment, binge-watching the first series of BBC’s Sherlock with her and Issa while eating pizza and ice cream. The blonde knew about the archer’s night job due to Xad’s bad secret keeping habits, although Oliver suspected that his dragon’s loose lips were due to his... fondness for a certain white dragon. Felicity had insisted that Oliver take the weekend off from vigilante-ing to join her in a relaxed evening at her home. Diggle had signed off his bodyguard duties early due to the archer’s plans to stay overnight in Felicity’s apartment and take her on a visit to the Foundry for the first time in the morning.

The only reason Oliver felt comfortable enough to agree to spend the evening and sleep over at Felicity’s was that he and she were… sort of dating? Xad and Issa’s match-making meddling meant that they’d gone out for dinner together twice and met up several more times. Oliver enjoyed bringing Felicity lunch at her executive-level office and the two of them occasionally ventured out of QC to get Big Belly Burger together. The two dragon guides had been simply delighted at their humans’ developing relationship, the mischievous little dragons even attempting to set them up on more dates and encouraging them to kiss each other.

“You know, Sherlock’s dragon reminds me of Xad,” Felicity mused. She was lying across the couch with her head in Oliver’s lap, so he could run his fingers through her hair absentmindedly.

“Sherlock’s dragon is black,” the archer frowned.

She smiled up at him, teasing, “Hmm, yeah, but he’s a snarky asshole just like Xad.”

Oliver laughed softly, glancing over to the other end of the couch. The two dragons were located near Felicity’s feet, poised in front of each other in a playful stand-off. One of them occasionally batted at the other with a paw, smirking. Most often it was Xad who initiated the contact and Issa who retaliated with an adorable growl and a return swipe. Oliver reckoned it was their own cute version of flirting.

“Can’t say I disagree with you,” the archer murmured in reply, grinning.

Xad’s head snapped around, breaking his staring match with Issa. “Are you talking about me?” he asked, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

“No,” Felicity reassured him. When the dragon humphed and turned his attention back to Issa, she had to cover her mouth to stifle her snicker. “Apparently he’s a _deaf_ snarky asshole,” she whispered to Oliver.

“HEY! I heard that!” Xad squawked, whipping around to glare at her. He bounded up on top of the blonde’s hip, flaring his wings and hissing half-heartedly at her so a small flame erupted from his nostrils. “Rude much!”

Issa laughed from behind him, diving off the end of the couch so she could fly up onto Oliver’s shoulder, snuggling into his neck. “You deserved it.”

Pouting, Xad replied, “You’re mean too.”

“Don’t worry.” Felicity stroked under the spiny dragon’s chin with one finger and Oliver smiled when he purred happily. “As sarcastic as you are, you’re still adorable.”

“And he knows it,” the archer rolled his eyes. “His ego’s already large enough as it is, don’t inflate it any further.”

“No, no, no,” Xad protested, nuzzling against Felicity’s hand while shooting an annoyed glare at his human. “She can say whatever she wants. You can shut up.”

The little white dragon slid down Oliver’s chest so she could attach herself to his arm, tiny claws digging into his shirt. “Surprised you survived Lian Yu, to be honest, Xad.”

“Why?”

“I’m just shocked Oliver didn’t throttle you a couple of days after you were first stranded because of how irritating you can be.”

“Hey!”

Xad bowled Issa over with a playful snarl, slapping her over the face with his wing. Both Oliver and Felicity exchanged amused glances, watching the nestmates squabble harmlessly for a minute or so before turning their attention back to the TV screen. Shortly after that, the blonde squirmed and decided to sit up, snuggling into his side. The archer tentatively ensured that her blanket covered them both.

His heart skipped a beat when Felicity rested her head on his shoulder with a happy sigh. Swallowing, Oliver made up his mind to take a risk and laced their fingers together, dropping their joined hands on his thigh underneath the blanket. If possible, the blonde just cuddled up to him even more, one of her feet absentmindedly brushing against his ankles and calves.

Oliver could get used to this. This lovely, warm touching between them. For so long, ever since he’d been shipwrecked on Lian Yu, he’d simultaneously craved and feared human contact, and when he’d arrived back in Starling, those fears hadn’t really faded. Human contact on Lian Yu… in Hong Kong and in Russia, it had always resulted in pain and betrayal. But he trusted Felicity. He trusted her implicitly. And because of that, the skin to skin contact between them was actually very relaxing. He felt calm when she was close to him. It was an extremely nice change.

Of course, the moment had to be ruined by Oliver’s cell phone beginning to buzz. Per Felicity’s orders of no phones during the binge-watch, he’d switched it onto silent and placed it on her kitchen counter just before they’d put on the first episode. Felicity was obeying the rules as well; as the CTO of QC, she was constantly receiving emails and calls about server updates, but today she’d had her EA, Katherine, set up a reroute so that any work calls went to her team at QC rather than her personal cell.

Oliver’s phone continued to make a horrific vibrating sound against her granite countertop for thirty seconds before ringing out. A wave of satisfaction swept through the archer when Felicity hummed pleasedly and pressed a gentle kiss against his shoulder, as if praising him for not getting up to answer it.

Not three minutes later, it started buzzing again. The two dragon guides groaned.

“Don’t you dare,” Felicity whined, clinging onto Oliver’s arm when he shifted, thinking that he maybe should pick up just in case it was an emergency. “We said no interruptions tonight!”

“It might be important,” he offered.

She pouted at him and shot him a half-hearted glare. He knew why. He had his phone set to pick up local news and major alerts from the police scanner, just in case the Vigilante was needed somewhere in the city… but Felicity knew that, because she’d set up that program for him.

“It might _not_ be important,” she argued weakly. “It might be a cat stuck up a tree or something. You know how the news can be these days. The Vigilante definitely isn’t needed on a Saturday night to go and rescue a cat out of a tree, but he is _very_ much needed on this couch, in this precise apartment, to watch Sherlock and cuddle with me.” Seeing the look the archer was aiming at her, she huffed and released his arm, shoving him off the couch. “Fine. Go and check it. But I’m taking your warm spot on the cushions.”

“We’ll get it!” Xad shrieked, head popping up.

“Yeah, we can bring it to you!” Issa agreed enthusiastically, appearing next to him.

Oliver tried to tell the two dragons that it wasn’t necessary, but the little guides had already jumped into the air and were racing over into the kitchen, beating their wings in a frenzy. The archer had to admit that they worked together as a team pretty well when the two of them managed to carry his cell phone back without dropping it, delivering it right into his hands. He stroked over Xad’s wings and dotted a tiny kiss on Issa’s head to say thank you before shooing them away. They stuck their forked tongues out at him in protest. They did, however, fly over to the couch and scramble to fight for a place to curl up in Felicity’s lap.

Oliver managed to check the caller ID and answer barely a moment before his phone would have rung off. “Hey, Thea.”

“Where are you?” his little sister exploded at him immediately. Oliver winced, drawing into himself a little. He couldn’t help but wrap his spare arm around his middle and tried to smile reassuringly at Felicity when she gazed up at him in concern. “You said you weren’t going out tonight when I asked this morning!”

“I’m at Felicity’s,” he replied. “And you specifically asked if I was going out _clubbing_ tonight because it’s a Saturday, not if I wasn’t going out at all. Why does it matter? Do you need me back home?”

Thea was quiet. All of her anger seemed to have leached out of her voice as she asked softly, “You’re with Felicity?”

“Yeah… Xad, Issa, Felicity and I are having a Sherlock marathon with pizza and ice cream. Do you really need me to come back?” He attempted not to sound too annoyed with her because he knew she hadn’t intentionally interrupted. He was quite anxious to get back to his relaxing evening, though. If he was wanted at home, it was by their mother, not by Thea or Walter, and that spelled trouble.

“Are you two _on a date?_ ”

Oliver almost rolled his eyes. “Yes, Thea, is that what you want to hear? We are. And Felicity is currently glowering at me because this was meant to be a cell phone free evening. I repeat my original question, is it absolutely imperative that I come home?”

“... It’s _supposed_ to be a surprise.”

His anxiety rocketed up to another level. A surprise? On the island, a surprise was a landmine rigged to explode you, or an ambush from a group of mercenaries with machine guns. “Thea, I don’t like surprises anymore,” he said tightly. “And I’m not coming if you don’t tell me what it is.”

“It’s a good surprise.”

“Thea.”

“Fine, fine! Just don’t tell Mom or Walter that I told you, okay? The blizzard in Alaska finally ended and Tommy and the Lances managed to get a flight back here this morning. Mom’s invited them around for a late dinner so they can see you.”

“You know, I would have thought she’d _ask_ me if I was free this evening rather than make plans and expect me to show up.”

“I know, I know, but to be fair, Ollie, none of us really expected your relationship with Felicity to take the turn it has. Tommy, Sara, Laurel, and Quentin are all waiting here for you at the moment, so either you’re going to have a make an appearance, however short that may be, or you’re going to have to call Mom and speak to her about it.”

Oliver sighed heavily, casting a glance back at Felicity, who quirked a curious eyebrow up at him. She’d paused the TV and was slowly petting the two dragon guides, causing them both to trill happily. He didn’t want to leave. This evening with her so far had been amazing. But… Tommy, Sara, and Laurel were his friends, or at least they had been before the Gambit. Sure, the archer was sure that things might be a little awkward between him and the Lances, but he’d been best friends with Tommy since they’d been kids. He owed it to his friendship with them to show up, especially as they’d made such an effort to get back to Starling to see him.

“Let me just consult with Felicity for a second,” he told his sister quietly. Lowering his arm so his hand holding his cell phone swung at his side, Oliver muttered apologetically to her, “My mom’s invited my friends from before the island around for dinner at the house…”

“Tommy, Laurel and Sara?” Xad questioned, cocking his head.

“Yeah.”

“You should go!” Felicity insisted. “Definitely, you should go.”

“Are you sure?” He was worried she might feel like he was interrupting their evening together because she was less important than his old friends, which wasn’t true at all. In fact, it was the complete opposite; Oliver knew that Tommy, Laurel, and Sara were going to treat him like the old Ollie, as if nothing had changed, while Felicity fully accepted him for who he was now. “I don’t have to -”

“Oliver, honestly, I think you should go,” Felicity interrupted, her voice firm. “You’re taking the entire weekend off, so we can always finish Sherlock tomorrow night. Come on, I can drive you over.”

“Can you come with me?” he asked.

She looked startled. “What?”

“Please?” he begged. “They’re going to ask questions about the island… they’re not going to shut up about it. I need you there to ground me.”

“Oliver… I don’t really think it’s my place to be there,” she responded, a slight blush to her cheeks. “You’ve all known each other for god knows how many years and I may not be to you, but to them, I’m a complete stranger.”

“Well, I’m going,” Issa piped up, arching her head to gaze up at her human. “I don’t want Xad hanging around unknown dragons.”

Xad looked confused. “They’re not unknown. I know them.”

“Yeah, but _I_ don’t,” Issa said, nuzzling him affectionately. “So I’m coming with. They need to know that you and I are a package deal now.”

Felicity spluttered. “Don’t I get a say in whether or not you go? You are my dragon guide.” Issa pointedly ignored her, flying from her human’s lap up onto Oliver’s shoulder. Xad followed her, so the two dragons were perched next to one another.

“Apparently not,” Oliver said. “I think she’s coming, whether you like it or not.”

Rolling her eyes, the blonde agreed, “Okay, I’ll come.”

Relieved, the archer brought his cell phone back up to his air, feeling a little guilty for making Thea wait so long for a response. “Felicity and I are both coming with Xad and Issa.”

“Finally!” Thea practically shouted. “Thank you!”

“We’ll see you in about half an hour.”

“Won’t Felicity need longer to do her makeup?”

“It’s a family dinner, Thea, not the Ritz. Mom can judge us all she wants for coming in casual wear, but she can’t complain because she didn’t give us any notice. We’ll see you soon.”

Felicity had already vanished into her bedroom and closed the door behind her by the time Oliver hung up, calling back that she was going to get changed. The archer held his hand up for Xad and Issa to jump down into so he could help them back down onto the couch. He probably needed to get changed too as his shirt was crumpled from where he and Felicity had been cuddling. Luckily, the blonde had encouraged Oliver to store some changes of clothes in the bathroom. He quickly washed his hair in the sink with a dab of Felicity’s strawberry shampoo and then changed into jeans, a white t-shirt and one of his favorite blue Henleys.

He was raking his hands through his hair to try and tame it a little from his rough towel drying when Felicity shouted out from in her room, “You said casual, right?”

“Yeah!” he called back. “Just something comfortable.”

“Got it! I’ll just be a minute!”

Oliver started tidying up the mess they made in the living room as he waited. As he was taking the empty pizza boxes over to Felicity’s recycling, he noticed that Xad and Issa were settled next to the kitchen sink, preening each other. He stopped and grinned at them as he heard Xad purring quietly, with Issa responding to him with little chuffs. They were adorable.

“Alright, I’m ready!” Felicity breathed, brushing herself down. Oliver couldn’t help but run his eyes up and down her appreciatively; she’d changed into black skinny jeans, a light grey vest top, and a silver sequined cardigan. She’d brushed out her blonde hair so it fell in natural waves over her shoulders and had decided on a natural makeup look. She was stunning. “Oh wow. That Henley really brings out the color of your eyes.”

“I’ve never seen you in skinny jeans before,” Oliver said, biting his lip as he tried not to stare at her very well defined legs.

“Yeah, I think I should wear them more often,” she nodded, peering down at herself. “Dresses are lovely and all, but I love these jeans.” She pocketed her cell phone and collected both Xad and Issa, letting them scuttle up her arm to hang off her shoulder. “Do you think Walter will mind if I use this as an opportunity to drop off some paperwork to him? I’ve got a contract proposal I wrote up about resource sharing with Palmer Technologies I need him to check. I was originally going to give it to him on Monday, but if I give it to him now, it gives him an extra day to look it over.”

Issa growled furiously at the mention of Palmer and Xad shushed her desperately. The nestmates plastered innocent expressions on their faces when Felicity turned to look at them in alarm and Oliver kept his face carefully blank when the blonde glanced over at him, silently asking him if he knew what was going on. Issa had never been very quiet about her blatant hatred of Ray Palmer - well, not to Oliver and Xad.

“Walter loves paperwork,” Oliver told her. “So I don’t think he’ll mind.”

“Good.” Felicity ducked back into the kitchen and came back with a very thick wad of paperwork. “You’ll need to hold this in the car while I drive.” She dumped it into the archer’s arms and Oliver gaped at how heavy it was. “There are over seventy pages of small print there and if you lose a _single page_ , I will destroy you digitally, got it?”

“She’s not kidding,” Issa mouthed at him.

“I know she’s not,” Oliver replied. He shifted so he was holding the paperwork more cautiously.

“It would definitely be a shame if a very unexpected… sudden… gust of wind appeared,” Xad teased from the blonde’s arm, flapping his wings to create a slight breeze. It wasn’t strong enough to really have an effect on the paper, but Oliver still glared at him.

“I’ll kill you as well, Xad,” Felicity said casually, locking up all of the windows and switching lights off as she grabbed her coat, getting ready to leave.

The dragon cocked his head and said, “Maybe it would be better for me to act as a paperweight?” He shot through the air over to Oliver, landing hesitantly on top of the paper stack. “Now none of the sheets will fly away in the wind.”

Xad remained curled up as they clambered into the car and began driving to the Queen mansion. Oliver decided it would be better for him and the two dragons to sit in the back, as Felicity’s Mini Cooper was rather small and he could hardly fit in the passenger seat without having to duck his head. Issa alternated between hanging onto the back of the driver’s seat with her head peeking out over Felicity’s shoulder and joining the other dragon on Oliver’s lap. They discussed the episodes of Sherlock they’d watched so far during the journey, which due to the night’s sporadic traffic, was only about twenty minutes long.

Arriving at the gates to the Queen property, they were almost immediately stopped by security guards. They only let the archer, Felicity, and the dragons pass through when Oliver rolled down the window and raised an eyebrow at them. Parking up between a shiny silver Lambo, which Oliver presumed was Tommy’s, and a grey sedan he recognized as Quentin’s, he clambered out of the Mini with a groan, stretching out his aching, cramped muscles.

“We’ve got to get you a new car,” he told Felicity, as she locked the vehicle. He handed her the paperwork pile as soon as she gestured for it, relieved to be no longer in charge of such an important document. “This one is tiny. I hurt all over. Pretty sure I narrowly avoided getting a concussion considering how many times I bumped my head on the roof.”

His dragon jumped up onto his head, nestling in his hair. “Yeah, you’re definitely going to have some bruises here in the morning,” Xad confirmed. “Maybe if your head wasn’t so massive, you wouldn’t have hit it so many times.”

“I don’t have a big head!” Oliver scowled at him.

“No dissing my Mini,” Felicity pouted. “I love this little car.”

“Just because you’re _huge_ , Oliver, doesn’t mean it’s too small,” Issa added, sticking her forked tongue out from where she was clinging to her human’s shoulder.

As the two humans headed up the porch steps, Xad leaned over Oliver’s shoulder to speak to Felicity, telling her, “He’s probably going to buy you a Mercedes for your birthday, just so you know. A nice big one that he doesn’t have to contort himself to get into.”

“Don’t you dare, Oliver Queen. Xad, if he tries, you stop him.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Oliver huffed and flicked his dragon guide over the head. He wasn’t planning on buying Felicity a Mercedes… he would have more likely bought her another Mini, just bigger and a better model than the one she currently had. Her current car was just a deathtrap. He knew that Felicity would hate him spending his trust fund money on getting her a new vehicle, but she couldn’t very well protest if he told her it was for his own state of mind, because he was so worried about her being safe when driving.

They reached the front doors and before the archer could get out his keys or raise his fist to knock, they were yanked open and Thea appeared, looking flustered. She was wearing a particularly nice coral blue dress and had obviously done up her hair. His little sister looked at his outfit in disgust, but Oliver couldn’t bring himself to care.

“You’re here,” Thea breathed. “Great. They’re all waiting in the living room.” She leaned further out of the entranceway, catching sight of the blonde. “Hi, Felicity! Damn, you look amazing.”

“Thanks,” Felicity blushed.

“Um, just so you know, I didn’t tell Mom or Walter that you were coming,” Thea told her, biting her lip. “I’m not sure how they’re going to -”

“Felicity is here with me,” Oliver cut in, shooting his sister a pointed look. “And they interrupted our evening together. So they shouldn’t mind at all that she’s accompanying me for emotional support.”

As Thea stepped back to allow them to come inside the house, she raised her eyebrows when she saw that the two of them were holding hands. “So are you two actually -” She waved her hand between them.

“Oh hell yeah they are,” Xad purred smugly.

“All thanks to our efforts,” Issa agreed, winking.

Felicity picked Xad up out of the nest he’d made in Oliver’s hair and the little brown dragon scuttled up her arm to snuggle next to the white she-dragon. “I think we had a part in it as well, you two can’t take all the credit.” Turning back to Thea, she confirmed with a shy smile, “Yes, Oliver and I are dating.”

Thea looked relieved. It was a strange reaction to the news, which prompted the vigilante to frown, tightening his hand around Felicity’s. “Okay, that’s good. Because Ollie, Laurel seems to have got some idea in her head that you and she are going to get back together now you’re back.”

Oliver stared at his sister in disbelief. He’d broken up with Laurel five years ago, shortly before getting onto the Gambit when he’d started cleaning up his act; it had taken Xad’s valuable help for him to realize that his relationship with Laurel was toxic and that they needed to separate. Now he was back after half a decade in Purgatory and here Thea was, telling him that Laurel was expecting to be his girlfriend again? He had absolutely no intention to date her again. He was extremely happy with Felicity now. She made him feel safe and relaxed, supported and loved. He’d never felt that way with Laurel.

“That’s not going to happen,” he said firmly.

“Damn straight,” Xad puffed. He sounded furious. Oliver knew why; his dragon guide had put in so much effort to convince the archer he would be more emotionally healthy away from Laurel. Xad had spent months aiding Oliver in building up his confidence so he could finally break up with her. His dragon did not want his human getting back together with Laurel.

Looking over at Felicity, he was reassured by her expression of understanding. She wasn’t upset or angry by what Thea had just said. In fact, she looked sympathetic and irritated for him. “I don’t want to be with Laurel,” he told her, his tone soft. “I want to be with _you_.”

“I know,” she smiled sadly. “I believe you.”

“I’m hoping that seeing you with Felicity will knock some sense into Laurel,” Thea whispered, keeping her voice quiet so that it didn’t drift into the living room and she wasn’t overheard. “You two will need to put on a show - I don’t know how, but make it _obvious_ you’re together and that you’re serious.” She narrowed her eyes. “Wait, you two _are_ serious, right?”

Oliver swallowed and glanced over at Felicity. She gazed back at him intently, her eyes shining with uncertainty. They hadn’t truly discussed establishing each other as partners, as girlfriend and boyfriend… but they’d been dating for around three weeks. Now seemed as good a time as ever to define their relationship.

“We’re serious,” Felicity nodded.

“Yeah,” Oliver grinned delightedly. “Yeah, we are.”

His eyes flickered to her mouth and he leaned down to press a gentle kiss to Felicity's lips. Her eyes flew open in complete astonishment but she quickly broke out into a wide, pleased grin against his lips, wrapping her arms around his neck to reciprocate passionately as one of the archer's hand slipped around to the back of her head, tangling with her hair.

“Halle-freakin’-lujah!” both Xad and Issa chorused when they broke apart.

Felicity rolled her eyes and shoved the two dragons off her shoulder. The pair of them shrieked, little bursts of fire escaping their snouts as they hovered next to the blonde’s hair; Issa slapped her human around the side of the head with one of her wings before zooming off to hide behind Xad in case Felicity retaliated.

“How dare you shove us!” Issa complained.

“You were kinda asking for it,” Oliver’s little sister commented amusedly.

Moira’s voice called loudly from the other room, “Thea? Is that your brother?”

Thea winced, glancing over at Oliver apologetically. Now that their mother had noticed Oliver’s arrival, they would need to head in and begin socializing with the Lances and Tommy. The archer was actually quite excited to see his old friends again, albeit nervous that they would expect him to act as he did before the island, when in fact he had so massively changed. He wondered how much his friends would have changed during his five years in hell. Undoubtedly, they’d been affected by the Gambit’s sinking and his status as presumed dead. It was ignorant of him to think they wouldn’t have changed also. Oliver was also a little concerned about how they would take the news that he and Felicity were dating, but truth be told, he didn’t really care whether they approved of that or not - he cared about Felicity greatly and nothing was going to change that.

“We’re coming, Mom!” Oliver shouted back to her. His lips still tingled a little from kissing Felicity. Squeezing her hand, he asked her quietly, “You ready?”

She took a shuddering breath, but nodded. “As I’ll ever be.”

“Just try and signal Oliver or me if you need a lifeline,” Thea told her.

The three of them entered the living room, the two dragon guides flying in behind the humans. They were immediately met by the sight of Moira and Walter passing out drinks, with Quentin, Sara, Tommy, and Laurel seated on one of the couches and chatting between themselves. Upon seeing the archer, Oliver’s old friends all gasped, their eyes widening as they stood. Their dragons, who were all gathered together on the coffee table, turned around to face them and froze.

Tommy moved forwards first, opening his arms up and saying, “What did I tell you? Yachts _suck_.” He captured Oliver in a tight hug, and although the embrace made him feel slightly uncomfortable, he kept a firm grip on Felicity’s hand to ground himself and let his childhood best friend hug him. Tommy obviously needed to do this, to reassure himself that Oliver was truly alive and here. “I missed you, buddy.”

“I missed you too,” Oliver smiled warmly, pulling back. “Have you done something to your hair?”

“Yeah, had about a hundred haircuts in the last five years,” Tommy laughed. “You’ve got a new look too. Short hair and scruff… going for a rustic, wilderness guy look?”

“It’s a lot better than the bird's nest on his head and chin squirrel he arrived back with, trust me,” Thea said.

“That’s the deserted island look,” Felicity commented teasingly, nudging Oliver in the side.

“Only difference between the two is the usage of scissors and a razor,” the archer raised an eyebrow at her.

Laurel and Sara both hurried forwards to hug Oliver themselves, although this time he squirmed and escaped out of their grasps a lot quicker than he did with Tommy. He could deal with letting one person embrace him, but more than that and he panicked a little. When he stepped away from them both, he backed into Felicity’s arms, and she steadied him with her hands on his hips and a gentle hum.

“I’m so happy you’re alive, Ollie,” Sara said, tears in her eyes.

Laurel nodded vigorously in agreement. She was trying to stroke her fingers down the archer’s chest, despite Oliver shuffling away from her and putting distance between them. “We thought you were dead.”

“Everybody did,” Quentin said from behind them. His gaze was uncharacteristically soft and sympathetic. “It’s good to have you back, son.”

Oliver inclined his head. “Thank you, Mr Lance.” He quickly noticed the group’s curious, suspicious and questioning glances towards Felicity. He was about to introduce her to them when Walter spoke up.

“Miss Smoak,” he said, surprised.

“Hi, Mr Steele,” she smiled. Nodding down at the documents in her arms, she continued, “Oliver and I were hanging out when Thea called to ask him to come over and I thought I would drop the Palmer Tech contract proposal off with you now.”

Moira glanced between the blonde and her son suspiciously as Walter took the pile of papers from Felicity, dropping them down onto the counter for later. “‘Hanging out’,” she repeated, a question in her voice.

Urging Felicity close to his side so he could wrap an arm around her waist, the archer took a deep breath before introducing her, “Mom, Walter… Tommy, Laurel, Sara, Mr Lance… this is Felicity Smoak. She’s the CTO of Queen Consolidated… and my girlfriend.”

There was a beat of astonished silence.

“Five years shipwrecked on an island and you came back a comedian, Oliver,” Quentin finally said, obviously thinking he was kidding.

“Oh, trust me, his sense of humor is as dismal as it’s always been,” Xad quipped. The little dragon banked down on his wings to join the other dragons on the coffee table, shaking himself regally. The other guides scattered as he landed, eyeing him with awe and caution. They were probably wary due to Xad’s new spiny appearance. “It just so happens that this isn’t any sort of joke. Oliver and Felicity are together and they’re serious.”

Nobody seemed to believe this was the truth, just staring at Oliver and Felicity incredulously. In response, the archer tightened his arm around Felicity’s waist possessively.

Thea, seeing how everybody was reacting to this news, backed them up by saying, “They were on a date when I called. They’re ridiculously cute.” She glanced over at Moira and Walter pointedly. “And they’re very _happy_.”

Oliver’s mother and stepfather both appeared slightly surprised, but their expressions didn’t change beyond that. Tommy, however, stepped forward towards Felicity with a brilliant smile on his face, holding his hand out for her to shake. It was an actual, proper grin, not the fake one that Tommy often used when it came to the media or girls who were too eager for his attention, and the archer was pleased to see that his best friend seemed genuinely delighted that Oliver had a girlfriend.

“Very nice to meet you,” Tommy said to Felicity. The moment she took his hand, instead of shaking it, he drew her in for a hug. The blonde released a shocked noise but allowed the embrace, shooting Oliver a wild, confused look over Tommy’s shoulder. “You’ve been keeping Oliver company since he got back and while we’ve been away?”

“Er, yeah,” Felicity nodded. “Helping him re-integrate, teach him about the improved technology, catching him up on some TV shows and movies he’s missed -”

“Shouldn’t Oliver be spending time with his _family_ to re-integrate rather than a girl he’s picked up from a bar?” Laurel cut in, her voice thunderous with anger. Her gaze was rapt with jealousy and she was glaring at Felicity as if she was holding back the urge to punch her.

Oliver immediately pulled Felicity away from Tommy to tuck her into his side protectively. He’d suspected that Laurel would react badly, but he hadn’t anticipated this sort of anger. “Actually, I haven’t stepped foot into a bar since I got back, Laurel,” he responded tightly. “Because unlike some people, I don’t have to rely on alcohol to enjoy life.”

Sara whistled under her breath. “Damn, Ollie, savage,” she muttered, but she sounded as if she was holding back laughter.

“And I met Felicity at Queen Consolidated,” the archer continued, glowering at Laurel. “Her dragon guide, Issa, used to be nestmates with Xad and they wanted to hang out together, so the two of us ended up hanging out as well… over the last three weeks, we started getting close and decided to give a relationship a shot.”

Issa, who had been uncharacteristically quiet throughout this conversation and hiding out on Felicity’s shoulder, added, “They care about each other.”

Sara shouldered past Laurel to greet Felicity, hugging her as well. “It’s great to meet you. Thank you for looking after Ollie while we were gone.”

“She’s going to continue to look after Oliver now you’re back, as well,” Xad said, a little tuft of smoke erupting from his nostrils that made the other dragons, who still remained silent, back away nervously.

At that point, Raisa appeared in the doorway to announce dinner was ready, and the archer was relieved to see that it decreased the tension slightly. Quentin took both Sara and Laurel by the arm and guided them away from the group into the living room; their dragons fluttered after them, abandoning Xad with Walter’s black dragon, Noildriar, and Moira’s violet dragon, Vaephay, on the table; Oliver could hear due to his improved senses that he was snapping at Laurel for being so cold and rude towards Oliver’s new girlfriend, who obviously cared about him a lot more than she did, if the only thing Laurel could do was try and throw veiled insults about Felicity and Oliver’s relationship. The archer exhaled slowly, relaxing at that - it appeared that he had not only Tommy’s support, but Quentin’s as well. Judging by Sara’s reaction, she was also on Oliver and Felicity’s side.

“That was awkward,” Thea said, breaking the silence that had fallen since the Lances vacated the room.

Felicity looked stricken, tugging on Oliver’s sleeve at his elbow. “Maybe I should go,” she murmured. “I don’t want to create problems with your family and friends.”

“No,” Oliver shook his head. “It’s okay. Laurel is the one creating the problems, not you.”

“Oliver is right,” Walter inclined his head, striding forwards to place a gentle hand on Felicity’s shoulder. “You should stay, Miss Smoak. I have to say, while I am surprised by the news that you and Oliver are in a relationship, I am very happy to hear it.”

“Me too,” Moira agreed quietly. Oliver blinked in shock - he hadn’t expected his mother to approve of them being together. But Moira’s eyes were sparkling as she observed the closeness between the two of them. “Anybody can see that you and Oliver have a connection, Miss Smoak. And I don’t think I’ve ever seen my son smile since he’s been back unless he’s around you.”

Felicity instantly blushed and Oliver knew that his own cheeks had reddened as well. It was true that he only often found himself able to relax and let go of his anxieties when he was with the blonde, which was why he smiled a lot more around her. When it came to his family, Oliver felt as if he had to put on a mask all the time, pretend to be the Ollie they’d lost on the Gambit. He was free to be himself around Felicity. Not to mention the fact that she knew about his vigilante escapades and his family didn’t.

“Thank you, Mrs Queen,” she said. “Please, call me Felicity.”

“Then you must call me Moira. If you’re dating my son, I’ll have none of this formal Mrs Queen business.”

“It actually makes sense that the two of you are together,” Vaephay commented, spreading and tucking her purple wings casually.

Noildriar nodded in agreement, glancing over at the younger, brown dragon with a jerk of his head. “Yes, we were wondering why Oliver and Xaddrosdis were sneaking at night so frequently, and arriving back early in the mornings before anybody else woke up. And if it’s true you haven’t been in a nightclub since you’ve been back, you’ve been going somewhere in the evenings. You were going to see Felicity and Issalalth, weren’t you?”

Before Oliver could panic over the revelation that he had Xad had been caught escaping the house to go to the Foundry for Hood patrols, Felicity spoke up, covering his back, “Actually, I think that’s my fault. Oliver’s been helping me work out early in the mornings before I go to work by running with me regularly. I asked him to start staying around at my apartment the nights before so that Diggle wouldn’t have to wake up at four to act as a taxi service from here to mine.”

“That’s so adorable,” Thea whispered.

“You could have told us, Oliver,” Moira said. “We wouldn’t have minded. I would have preferred to know you were sleeping over at Felicity’s rather than find out now you’ve been sneaking out.”

“By climbing out of his bedroom window,” Vaephay added.

“Out the window?” Moira repeated, her pleasant expression shifting into one of alarm.

Xad hissed at the violet dragon. “Have you been spying on us?”

“I’m sure she’s just worried about you,” Issa said, trying to calm her friend down.

“How come you’ve never mentioned this to me before?” Moira asked her dragon guide.

Vaephay shrugged. “Oliver’s seemed capable every time I’ve seen him do it. He’s never fallen or slipped. I trust Xad to keep him safe.”

Moira narrowed her eyes at the spiny brown dragon, obviously about to start telling him off for not stopping her son from jumping out of windows, but Oliver interrupted by saying that the Lances were waiting for them. The four dragon guides returned to their humans’ shoulders as they all moved into the dining room, although the archer could tell that Xad wanted to go and sit next to Issa. As they all settled down at the table together, the dragons went to sit on their own little table in the corner of the room. Once all the drinks were poured, most of them choosing an expensive, aged red wine apart from the archer, who decided to drink water, the food was brought in. While the others enjoyed full portions of roasted pork belly, spiced new potatoes and vegetables, and the dragons tore into a leg joint, Oliver and Felicity only served themselves small plates.

“You two aren’t having any more?” Walter asked worriedly.

“We had pizza and ice-cream at Felicity’s earlier,” Oliver told him.

Laurel shot Felicity a dirty look from across the table. “Pizza and ice-cream used to be mine and Ollie’s thing,” she muttered, glaring.

“It’s pizza and ice-cream,” Thea said, glancing at her incredulously. “How can that be a ‘thing’? It’s one of the most common foods in America - combined with one of the most common desserts in America.”

Quentin cleared his throat, trying to draw attention away from Laurel, who was now glowering down at her pork belly sulkily. “So, Oliver. What’s it like being back in Starling City? Different from that island, I’m guessing.”

The archer managed to plaster on an indifferent expression. He’d anticipated being asked about Lian Yu and was thankful Felicity was here beside him to support him. “Very different. The city has definitely changed a lot during the time I was away, it’s taken some time to get used to. There’s about half a dozen more ‘Big Belly Burger’s than I remember.”

“They expanded,” Sara grinned. “Changed the menu too. Have you been since you got back?”

“Felicity took me last week.”

“Don’t worry, I made sure he tried the chili crinkle-cut fries and the concrete shakes,” Felicity informed Sara, seeing the way the younger Lance sister was looking at her questioningly.

“What did you think of them?” Sara asked.

Oliver shrugged. “I’ve only eaten bland plants and rare meat and fish for the last five years, so for my taste buds, the fries were a little too hot and the shake was a bit too sweet. But they were both really good.” Linking his arm with Felicity’s, his lips ticked up into a small smile as he gazed at her intently and continued, “I’ve finally found somebody who will eat the pickles off my burger for me, though.”

“I can’t believe you don’t like pickles,” Felicity said, rolling her eyes fondly.

“They’re too salty and always taste too much like vinegar,” he wrinkled his nose.

“The Big Belly Burger ones aren’t very vinegar-y at all,” she assured him. “I’ll save you one next time we go so you can taste it. You might be surprised.”

“Hey, Oliver.” The archer turned to Tommy, who was addressing him. Frowning, Tommy’s voice was unusually earnest as he questioned, “What was it like there? On the island?”

He instinctively stiffened as he always did when somebody asked him about his five years of hell, and averted his eyes so he was staring at the wall near where the dragons were. The room fell quiet. Felicity’s fingers curled around Oliver’s hand underneath the table, squeezing gently. He could see out of the corner of his eye Thea shaking her head vehemently towards Tommy, and both Moira and Walter appearing troubled by how Oliver might react. Xad and Issa were gazing at him anxiously from the table.

But keeping his tone carefully flat, the archer replied to his best friend with the blunt, emotionless answer he normally gave when somebody asked him what Lian Yu was like: “It was cold.”

“Not as cold as Alaska was, I’m certain,” Moira said loudly, trying to change the subject. “Quentin, Sara, Tommy, you must tell us all about your trip, it must have been quite exciting.”

Laurel completely ignored the hint to shut up. “Presumed dead and shipwrecked for half a decade and the only thing you can say about the place is that it was _cold?_ ” she sneered.

Xad and Issa both growled quietly from the table, flicking their tails agitatedly as they flare and tucked their wings. Felicity shifted in her seat beside Oliver as if she was about to stand, a furious look crossing over her face. Oliver tightened his grip on her hand, trying to tell her silently that it was okay, she didn’t need to defend him.

“I don’t like talking about what happened, Laurel,” he said patiently. “Those five years were painful for me.”

“And what, you think we _weren’t_ in pain back here?” she snapped. “You were dead, Ollie, and we mourned you. We had a funeral with an empty grave. You have no idea how much torture we had to go through.”

Oliver’s temper got the better of him. Who was Laurel to think that she went through worse than him? She had no idea what he’d suffered. “Pretty certain you didn’t have to survive _literal_ torture though,” he retorted.

Laurel instantly paled. Glancing around the table, Oliver could see that everybody else was staring at him with horrified, perturbed expressions. He’d said too much. In his outrage, he’d revealed something that he’d never intended any of them to find out. Swallowing his tongue, Oliver lowered his gaze to his now trembling hands, a heavy weight materializing within his chest and partly crushing his lungs. Dizziness crashed over him as he began to struggle to breathe. It was the beginnings of a panic attack and he wanted - no, _needed_ to get out of this suffocating environment.

“Oliver and I are going to sit in the living room for a minute,” he heard Felicity say through the fog rolling in at the fringes of his mind. He felt her hands wrap around his wrists and urge him to his feet. “Come on, Oliver. No, Xad, Issa, you two can finish off your meal… I’ve got this.”

Oliver calmed down within seconds of exiting the dining room, and his hands had stopped shaking by the time Felicity gently pushed him down onto one of the couches. Snuggling up to him, the blonde placed one of her hands on his chest over his heart, to both offer comfort and monitor his raised heart rate. Oliver sort of wished that their two dragon guides had followed after them to join in on the cuddle pile, but they were both hungry and deserved a nice meal after they’d only eaten a couple slices of ham each at Felicity’s.

“If Laurel’s goal is to royally piss off everybody here tonight, she’s succeeding,” Felicity said dryly.

Oliver snorted a laugh before letting disgust take over. “I can’t believe I was ever attracted to her. She’s about four more disrespectful comments away from getting an arrow shot into her shoulder.”

“Four?” Felicity raised an eyebrow. “I think you’re being too generous.”

“I’m sorry this dinner isn’t going so well,” he apologized.

“To be honest, apart from Laurel being a bit of a bitch, I think it’s been good. Mr Lance, Sara, and Tommy seem to like me and I like them. Your mother and stepfather approve of our relationship and Thea is ecstatic about it.” Stroking her fingers delicately along his arm, Felicity questioned, “The others’ dragons… they don’t talk very much.”

“They never have,” Oliver replied. “Although Tommy’s is usually a bit more chatty. They’re all most likely exhausted from their journey back from Alaska. The cold would have sapped their strength, as well.”

Felicity nodded in understanding. “None of them introduced their dragons to me.”

“You know Noildriar and Vaephay.”

“Walter’s and your mom’s,” she confirmed.

“The smaller brick red one with black speckles is Azgarion, he’s Tommy’s. Normally has a bit of a mouth on him, but he’s sensible. Xad used to get along well with him. Sara’s dragon is the one with the black and yellow patterned scales, called Eskarys. She’s very reserved and doesn’t really speak to anybody except Sara. Quentin’s dragon, Brasenor, is the grey one with sharp spines and slightly frayed wings, damaged from Quentin’s years working in the police. And the dragon who’s light blue with the dark blue tail is Laurel’s. Her name’s Kandarya and her personality is similar to Laurel’s… the other dragons usually let her take the lead. All of them except Quentin’s have nicknames. Az, Arys, and Arya.”

“All similar and beginning with ‘A’? That has to be confusing.”

Oliver sighed. “Once you’ve spent enough time with them all, you get used to it. None of them are as bold and confident as Xad and Issa. Our guides enjoy bantering with us, but the others would never even consider anything of the sort.”

“Their dragons should grow some spines,” Felicity muttered. “Laurel’s one - Arya - especially. Laurel needs a guide to tell her to stop being so disruptive, arrogant and rude.”

The archer blinked. He’d never heard Felicity describe another person like that. “Strong words.”

“I’m not wrong, though, am I?”

He chuckled and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead. “No, I don’t suppose you are.”

Both of them almost fell off the cushions they were so startled when a fierce roar split the air, accompanied by frightened screams. Oliver was on his feet and sprinting back into the dining room within seconds, blood pounding in his ears and adrenaline in his veins making him feel almost giddy with apprehension. He practically skidded into the room with Felicity hot on his heels, peering around frantically for the source of the snarl that could have scared his family and friends so much.

Issa had her wings flared out to full span and was growling ferociously, claws and fangs bared and a flame ball at the back of her throat. Xad was hiding behind her with wide eyes, wrapped up in his own wings as if shielding himself. The other dragons were clinging to their humans’ arms, all appearing terrified, while the humans themselves looked stunned and slightly afraid.

“Issa?!” Felicity questioned, alarmed. She looked as shocked as everybody else, eyeing her guide cautiously. Oliver had never heard her little white dragon roar like that before, and the blonde apparently hadn’t either. “What’s going on?”

“She attacked us!” Laurel’s dragon, Ayra, shrieked.

“Now that’s not exactly true, is it?” Brasenor said sternly, clambering up onto Quentin’s shoulder and huffing. “It wasn’t _us_ she attacked, it was _you_ , Kandarya.”

Az, Tommy’s red dragon, was nodding. “And attack is a very strong word. Issalalth’s reaction was… warranted.”

“Nobody’s actually answered my question,” Felicity said. “What _happened?_ ”

“That’s what we would like to know,” Moira spoke up.

“Yeah, we’re all confused as well,” Tommy added.

Thea crossed her arms over her chest. “None of us saw what happened. One of the dragons will have to provide the answers.”

“It’s like Ayra said, that feral white dragon attacked them,” Laurel claimed, lifting her chin haughtily.

Sara shot her sister a glare. “We don’t know that Laurel.” She leaned her head down so that her dragon could whisper into her ear. “Arys says that it’s Arya’s fault… apparently she was being mean to Xad and Issa was protecting him.”

“Being mean,” Issa spat. She released her fireball, bounding forwards to the edge of the table with a snarl. “She was insulting Xad! What she was saying was so _cruel_. I should claw her eyes out!”

“Hey, easy,” Felicity admonished her. She held out her hand so that Issa would climb onto it. “Nobody is clawing anybody’s eyes out today.”

Oliver slipped over to the table and gently picked up Xad, who was still silent and spooked. Curling up at the archer’s neck, Oliver winced when the dragon’s spines scratched his skin, but was content to let Xad be considering how shaken he was.

“You okay?” he asked his guide quietly.

Xad chuffed. “Not really,” he answered, his voice barely audible.

“What was Arya saying about Xad?” Walter asked.

His own dragon responded, Noildriar puffing out a ring of smoke as he replied, “She was commenting very rudely about Xaddrosdis’ change in appearance. I believe the words she was using were ‘ugly’, ‘hideous’ and ‘nasty.’”

Oliver closed his eyes, rubbing a hand over his face. Xad’s ‘change in appearance’, as Noildriar had put it, was referring to the growing of spines and color shift of his scales. Before the Gambit’s sinking, Xad had been a light, hazel brown color and spineless as most young dragons were. But once he and Oliver had been trapped on Lian Yu, the dragon had started transforming, changing physically. With every fight they were caught in, Xad’s spines began forming, almost as if the spines were trophies and medals proving how often he’d won battles with other dragon guides. With every shed he went through, Xad adapted more and more to the island’s harsh conditions, a handful of dark green scales replacing the hazel brown ones every time so he could blend in and camouflage with the vegetation. The new green detailing made Xad look like an entirely different dragon. However, Oliver had never thought that anybody would insult Xad for his changed appearance.

Issa rumbled fiercely, fluttering over from Felicity to coil up next to Xad, purring as she rubbed up against his scales and blanketed him with one of her wings. “I think we should leave.”

“Yes, I think you should,” Laurel seethed. There was no mistaking the hatred in her eyes.

“I think if anybody should leave, it’s you,” Moira said.

Laurel looked affronted. “Excuse me?”

Moira didn’t even blink. “You heard me,” she quirked an eyebrow. “You’ve outstayed your welcome, Miss Lance. I would like you to leave.” She tossed Quentin and Sara apologetic glances. “I’m very sorry that I have to ask to you go so abruptly, but I cannot and will not tolerate Laurel’s kind of behavior in this house. She has been nothing but crass and impolite every since arriving.”

“It’s alright, Moira,” Quentin said. “Thank you for your hospitality and the wonderful dinner.”

“Yes, thank you,” Sara agreed. 

Brasenor popped his head up to add, “And thank you for feeding us.”

“You’re very welcome,” Walter said. “Let me walk you all to the door.”

Quentin clapped Oliver on the shoulder and Sara hugged him, but Laurel didn’t even bother doing anything to say goodbye, staying far away from the archer, who remained stubbornly at Felicity’s side as Quentin and Sara said goodbye to her also. Walter lead the three Lances out of the dining room, and Oliver watched as they rounded the corner and disappeared before turning his attention back to the other people in the room.

Tommy dusted his hands off, picking up a stray chunk of pork belly for Az to munch on while balancing on his human’s wrist. “I should probably head home too; it’s getting late and my dad will get angry if I’m not home by midnight.”

“It was great to see you, buddy,” Oliver smiled, embracing him but being careful not to accidentally knock Az off of Tommy’s arm, while Tommy was being heedful of jolting Xad and Issa. “Thanks for coming over.”

“It was so good to see you too,” Tommy replied. “And so very nice to meet you, Felicity. You keep making sure my best friend here is happy, you hear me?”

“Of course,” Felicity laughed softly. “As long as Oliver is happy, I’m happy.”

“Mostly because that means they’re kissing each other,” Issa whisper-shouted, winking.

After another round of hugs and Tommy’s silver Lambo was driving off into the distance towards the gates, Oliver drew Felicity into his arms and then sighed when she tucked her head under his chin with a hum. Xad and Issa nuzzled them both affectionately, winding their tails together.

“We should get going,” the archer murmured.

“You have to go so soon?” Moira questioned, sounding disappointed. “Why doesn’t Felicity stay the night? We can set up a guest room… or send up an extra pillow or two for your bedroom, Oliver.”

The archer snuck Felicity a glance. They could always stay here… but he’d promised to spend the day with her tomorrow, and that included taking Felicity to visit the Foundry for the first time early in the morning. If they stayed at the Queen mansion overnight, they’d be expected to join Walter, Moira, and Thea for breakfast and then wouldn’t have enough time.

“Actually, tomorrow morning is one of our running mornings,” Felicity lied, her voice apologetic. “So Oliver already made arrangements with his bodyguard so he could stay over at mine.”

“Well, you’re welcome to stay over anytime, Felicity,” Moira said graciously.

“At least let us call a car for you,” Walter suggested.

“Thank you for the offer, but I drove Felicity’s car here and deliberately didn’t drink so I could drive us back,” Oliver said. “We’ll need her car for what we have planned tomorrow.”

Moira, Walter, and Thea insisted on smothering Felicity with more hugs before they departed. Oliver couldn’t help but smile as he watched his family fully embrace and accept his girlfriend, telling her to visit again soon for another dinner, or go to out shopping with the girls. Walter thanked her for bringing the Palmer Tech documents over and told her she was welcome to meet him in his home office instead of at Queen Consolidated from now on, if it was easier for her.

“We’re so happy for you and Felicity, Oliver,” his mother murmured, as she hugged him to say goodbye.

“Thank you. Maybe the three of us could meet up for lunch sometime? With our dragons of course.”

“Yes, I’d very much like to get to know Issalalth some more,” Vaephay nodded, ruffling her purple wings.

“That would be lovely,” Moira agreed. Leaning in, she smirked as she whispered, “And let Walter and I know when you want me to get your Grandma Dearden’s diamond engagement ring from the bank vault.”

The archer blushed, quickly glancing over at Felicity to make sure she hadn’t overheard, but she was in deep conversation with Walter, Thea, and Noildriar across the other side of the foyer. “Mom,” he protested. “We’ve been going out for _three weeks_.”

“I know… I know…” She and Vaephay both winked at him before walking away.

Once Felicity and Oliver were outside, the front doors were closed after the Queens waved goodbye and they were alone next to the Mini, they simultaneously released sighs of relief. They’d survived the evening. Reaching up to the dragons on his shoulder, Oliver held Xad and Issa in his hand, stroking his own guide’s head with his thumb gently. Xad had been very quiet ever since Arya had insulted him and Oliver was a little worried about him.

“Are you okay?” he asked gently.

“Fine,” Xad grumbled. Ah, so he wasn’t upset… he was just grumpy and annoyed. “Irritated that Issa had to fight my battle for me.”

“I’m kind of glad she did, to be honest,” Oliver said. “Issa can be vicious when she wants to be but she’s also controlled. If you’d snapped and attacked Arya, she would never fly again.”

“Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing,” Issa sniffed.

Felicity scratched under her dragon’s chin with one finger, chuckling. “Arya knows not to ever cross you again, you fierce little blaze.”

“She’s certainly a firecracker,” Oliver laughed.

Issa puffed out her chest proudly. “Always have been and always will be.” She nuzzled up to her friend tenderly. “Just ignore what that horrible witch dragon said, Xad. I think you’re incredibly handsome. Your spines are intimidating and your dark green scales make you look very distinguished.”

“Your opinion is the only one that matters,” Xad purred back to her, rubbing his neck up against hers. “We should get going… Thea’s spying on us through the window.”

Oliver glanced over quickly and rolled his eyes at the sight of his little sister peering around one of the curtains at them. Thea didn’t even look guilty at being caught, she just stuck her tongue out and vanished.

“I heard her trying to arrange a shopping trip with you for next week,” he said to Felicity. “For the sake of your sanity, I’m begging you, don’t go. She will hold you hostage for over eight hours and I will have to come and rescue you.”

“So she’s enthusiastic about retail,” Felicity shrugged. “So am I.”

“You are?”

“You obviously haven’t looked inside Felicity’s shoe closet yet,” Issa quipped.

“She must have over twenty pairs of shoes,” Xad nodded. “I think Felicity would be able to survive a Thea-style shopping excursion.”

Oliver shot him a dubious look. Even their mother struggled to keep up with his little sister when they went shopping. “Right. Okay, everybody into the car. If we get back in time, we might have time to watch one more episode of Sherlock before bed.” He paused after opening the driver’s side door, and then asked confusedly, “Wait, Xad, you’ve been in Felicity’s shoe closet? Why?”

“NO REASON!” Xad squeaked, exchanging a frantic look with Issa. The two dragons bolted into the car after one another, whispering hurriedly, but quietly so their humans couldn’t eavesdrop.

Felicity beckoned Oliver closer to her and leaned in to inform him, “I think the two of them have made a nest of sorts in there.”

The archer muffled his laughter with his hand. “You’re not serious.”

“No, really, I think they’ve constructed a nest together. All the hand towels disappeared around a week ago, some of my pairs of fluffy socks went missing, and the shelf at the top of the closet has been blocked off with this wall of soft fabrics. They’re nesting.”

“Should we be expecting dragonlets in the future?”

“I’m not sure,” she admitted. “They’re nestmates but they’re not related… they don’t have the same parents, they were just hatched in the same environment. It… _might_ be possible. I’ll keep my eye out for any eggs.”

“Xad and Issa are about the size of my hand,” Oliver glanced down at his limb with a frown. “I can’t imagine how small a baby dragon would be…”

“About the size of your pinky finger,” Felicity guessed. “But they grow fast. They wouldn’t be that small for long, because they start eating red meat straight away.” She bit her lip with a smile. “Look at us… talking about preparing for our dragon guides to have babies before we even know if they’re nesting for that reason. Or if they’re even together.”

“I think it would be a safe bet to say that they are,” Oliver said, motioning his head over at the car. Xad and Issa were curled up together on the back seat, wings tucked around each other as they snuggled. “And better to be prepared than not to be, right?”

“Hey!” Issa shouted from inside the car. “Can you two stop talking about whatever the hell you’re talking about so we can get home?”

“Yeah, we’re not getting any younger here!” Xad exclaimed.

Oliver snickered, dropping a gentle kiss to the side of Felicity’s head. He then gave in to the urge to capture her lips within his for another brief, searing kiss, tilting her chin up gently with one finger, before walking around the car to open the passenger door for her. “Then again… kids of those two? There’s no way for us to be prepared.”

Felicity laughed. “No kidding.”

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Tumblr: @alexiablackbriar13  
> Twitter: @lexiblackbriar


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